Epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) is a naturally derived compound from green tea with high antioxidant activity and various anti-cancer properties. EGCG has been widely investigated worldwide. However, effects of EGCG on cell cycle of K562 have not been clearly stated elsewhere. This study was conducted with the aim to investigate the antiproliferative effect of EGCG on K562 human leukemic cells and its underlying mechanism of action on the cells. MTT assay was conducted to determine cytotoxicity effect of EGCG on the K562 cells. Meanwhile, cell cycle analysis and DNA damage on the cells were determined by Flow cytometry and Comet assay respectively. K562 cells were treated with EGCG at concentrations ranging from 0 to 100µg/ml for 48 hours. The results showed that EGCG effectively decreased the percentage of cell viability in a dose dependent manner. The IC10, IC25 and IC50 of EGCG on K562 cell lines were 5 ± 2.44 µg/mL, 10 ± 5.93 µg/mL and 50 ± 1.93 µg/mL, respectively. In cell cycle assay, EGCG has shown no significant effect (p>0.05) on the cell cycle of K562 cell line as compared to negative control, whereas Imatinib mesylate as the positive control showed cell cycle arrest at S phase in this cell line. Hence, EGCG can be verified as a non-cell cycle specific compound. In addition, EGCG was found to cause a significant increase (p<0.05) in tail moment value and percentage of DNA tail in K562 cell line, suggesting DNA damage as an early signal of EGCG induced cell cytotoxicity. In conclusion, by decreasing the cell viability and inducing DNA damage, EGCG showed promising potential as an alternative treatment for leukemia through non-cell cycle specific pathway and further investigation on other mechanisms of action of EGCG on the cells is recommended.

This review aims to present an overview of current research findings on the possible effects of circadian rhythm (CR) disruption towards metabolic stress and mental health. CR can be described as an internal biological clock that regulates our body functions, based on our sleep/wake cycle. Any time that our normal 24-hour circadian rhythm is altered or interrupted, it will have physiological and psychological impacts. However, in today’s demanding working world, most of us are working defying the normal conditions without realising the significant drawbacks of it. Therefore, this review summarises the findings from several researches on the physiological (metabolic stress) and psychological (cognitive functioning and mental health) impacts of the CR disruption in order to assist people to have a holistic view on the effects of CR to our mind and body. Evidences that linked these aspects to health circumstances of shift workers have also been highlighted.

This study was carried out to compare the effective dose, size specific dose estimation (SSDE) and scan length between genders and between CT scanner with different slice number. A total of 245 set data of radiation dose and scan length for CT scanning procedure involving thorax, abdomen and pelvis regions were obtained retrospectively for comparisons. 111 patients (60 males and 51 females) were scanned using 160-slices CT scanner while 134 patients (71 males and 63 females) were scanned using 640-slices CT scanner. Generally, there were no significant differences in the radiation dose and scan length among genders. However, differences for SSDE in CT thorax and CT thorax-abdomen-pelvis (TAP) protocols exist whereby in CT thorax protocol, 640-slices CT scanner had a significantly higher value of SSDE (9.06±2.67 mGy) than that in 160-slices CT scanner (7.82±1.33 mGy). Similarly to the CT TAP protocol, whereby 640-slices CT scanner had a significantly lower value in SSDE (9.17±1.59 mGy) than that in 160-slices CT scanner (10.76±3.72 mGy). In conclusion, there was no significant difference in the radiation dose and scan length between genders but significant difference was only observed in SSDE due to the presence of body size variation among the study population especially in different CT scanners.

Body sizes of patients undergoing x-ray examination vary in body mass index (BMI) and waist circumference (WC). This study aimed to evaluate the relationship between BMI and WC on the image quality of abdominal computed radiography (CR). Anteroposterior supine abdomen projection was conducted on 69 patients from Hospital Raja Perempuan Bainun, Ipoh using a Siemens Multixtop general x-ray unit, and the images were processed with CR Carestream Direct view Max. Samples were categorised into normal BMI (n = 23), overweight (n = 23) and obese (n = 23). Image quality was measured quantitatively in signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and qualitatively by visual grading analysis (VGA) based on the Commission of the European Communities (CEC) image criteria. Data were analysed by analysis of variance (ANOVA) and Pearson’s correlation for comparison and determining the relationship among BMI, WC and image quality. Results showed a significant difference (p < 0.01) in image quality of VGAmean (normal = 4.40 ± 0.15, overweight = 4.35 ± 0.13, obese = 4.03 ± 0.34) and SNRmean (normal = 60.79 ± 2.19, overweight = 59.66 ± 1.68, obese = 55.78 ± 4.31). A moderate to high negative correlation existed between SNR (r = −0.73), VGA (r = −0.7) with BMI (p < 0.01) and between SNR (r = −0.83), VGA (r = −0.79) with WC (p < 0.01). This study suggests that WC has a higher negative linear relationship than BMI and can be used as an effective image quality predictor for abdominal CR examination.

Malnutrition is a common occurrence during cancer treatment among pediatric cancer patients and without proper care, it can bring negative implications. The purpose of this study was to develop a printed educational material titled “Penjagaan Pemakanan untuk Penjaga Kanser Kanak-Kanak” (Nutrition Care for Children with Cancer) to help the caregivers to manage their child in terms of nutrition. The objective of this study was to evaluate caregiver’s knowledge, attitude and practice (KAP) before and after receiving the printed educational material and to evaluate the acceptance of the printed educational material among caregiver. This quantitative study (Quasi-Experiment) was conducted among pediatric oncology caregivers in Institute of Pediatrics Hospital Kuala Lumpur (IPHKL)(n=34) and Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Medical Center (UKMMC)(n=34). IPHKL served as the experimental group where the caregivers received the developed booklet meanwhile UKMMC served as the control group where the caregivers received a pamphlet published by Institut Kanser Negara titled “Terapi Diet Pesakit Kanser – Kesan Sampingan Rawatan dan Cara Mengatasinya” (Nutrition Care for Cancer – How to Overcome the Side Effects of the Treatment). Results from this study showed that there was a significant increase (p<0.05) for KAP of the caregivers in both groups with a higher increase was seen in the experimental group. The score for KAP in the experimental group was (70 ± 8%) and after receiving the printed educational material, the score significantly increased to (92 ± 10%) which was higher compared to control group where their score before was (70 ± 11%) and increased to (77 ± 10%). For the evaluation of acceptance, there was a significant difference (p<0.05) for the mean score between experimental group (48.85 ± 4.931) and control (42.29 ± 6.834) with t= 4.538. In conclusion, the printed educational material developed from this study was well accepted and has the potential to effectively increase caregivers’ nutritional knowledge of managing the nutritional aspect of pediatric cancer patients during treatment. This could improve their nutritional status for a better clinical outcome.

Ulam is fresh traditional Malaysian vegetables which normally consumed in raw form or after a short blanching process. It contains high antioxidants and polyphenols. However, there is limited study about the relationship between ulam consumption and cognitive status. Thus, a cross sectional study was conducted to determine the relation with cognitive function among 132 middle-aged Malays adults (45-59 years old), recruited by convenient sampling from low income residences in Klang Valley. Respondents were interviewed to obtain data on sociodemography, dietary intake and total ulam intake and also measured for anthropometric parameters at respective community centres. Cognitive status was measured using Digit Span (attention and working memory), Rey auditory verbal learning test (RAVLT) (verbal memory) and comprehensive trail making test (CTMT) (cognitive flexibility). The average ulam intake by the respondents was 15.1 ± 8.2g/day and the top five highest consumed ulam were petai (68.1%), pucuk paku (62.9%), ulam raja (56.8%), pegaga (54.6%) and kesum (44.7%).There was a significant correlation between ulam intake with Digit Span (r = 0.265, p = 0.006), total immediate recall of RAVLT (r = 0.427, p < 0.001) and CTMT (r = 0.257, p = 0.007). Analysis of multiple regression indicated that total ulam intake was a significant predictor for Digit Span (R2 = 0.152, p < 0.05), RAVLT (R2 = 0.335, p = 0.001) and CTMT (R2 = 0.310, p < 0.001). In conclusion, this study showed that ulam has the potential to protect against cognitive decline, however, randomized control trials should be conducted to determine the efficacy of the ulam as neuroprotective agent.

Microbiological contaminations in the laboratories create not only diagnostic issues but also pose a major health risk to lab users. This study was conducted to determine the airborne microbial contamination in seven selected laboratories (KA, KP, PB, NA, BP, CR and MB) at a local public university in Malaysia and to assess the level of contamination on the contact surfaces of the studied laboratories. Two types of sampling methods were used in this study; passive air sampling and contact surface swab sampling. The total microbial counts were determined using Tryptone Soya agar (bacterial count) and Potato Dextrose agar (fungal count). Results showed that NA laboratory had the highest level of total microbial contamination (20.33 ± 3.35 CFU/cm3 ). Most laboratories had significantly higher (p < 0.05) air fungal contamination level compared to bacterial contaminations except for PB and NA laboratories. Significant differences were observed for airborne bacterial contamination readings between sampling time (during working hours vs after hours) for all laboratories except for BP and CR. Overall, bacterial contamination was the highest for incubator door handles’ samples from MB laboratory with an average reading of 93.00 ± 1.43 CFU/cm2 whereas the highest fungal contamination level was obtained from door knobs and work benches, both from CR laboratory with an average reading of 73.33 ± 6.67 CFU/cm2 and 73.33 ± 0.58 CFU/cm2 respectively. Findings from this study could assist in monitoring the efficacy of the existing laboratory management systems namely on the good laboratory practices including aseptic techniques, care for laboratory hygiene and cross-contamination control practices by the laboratory users to ensure that the microbiological contaminations in the laboratories are minimized.

Certain public service pre-school teachers have been trained as vision screeners of children. However, there are no studies that assessed the knowledge and skills retention of these screeners. This study determines the level of knowledge retention among pre-school teachers who have been trained to perform vision screening on children. In 2013, 180 KEMAS pre-school teachers were recruited in a vision screening training which included both theory and practical sessions. Teachers were assessed through a theory test which comprised of 15 questions, firstly a category on the preparations needed for vision screening and secondly on the implementation of vision screening. They were then asked to conduct pre-school vision screening annually at their working premises. In 2016, 136 teachers who had been involved in the earlier program were recruited as subjects in this study. All these subjects answered the same set of theory test questions used in 2013. The Student’s t-test result indicated that the mean theory test scores obtained by the pre-school teachers in 2013 (84.3 ± 7.8) differed significantly with the mean scores obtained in 2016 (67.5 ± 11.3) (p < 0.001). The mean scores in 2013 for questions in the first and second categories were 4.5 and 4.4, decreasing to 4.2 and 3.7 in 2016. The knowledge level of pre-school teachers thus decreased with time and this effect was found significant after 3 years. There is therefore a need to conduct re-certification training, so that the screening conducted by these pre-school teachers remains effective and in accordance with established standards.

Fibres are important trace evidence that can be found during the course of crime scene investigation. The identification and analysis of these fibres shed light as to the circumstances surrounding a particular crime. Identifying the factors that affect the transference of fibres under various environments are crucial in providing robust conclusions of a case per se, as highlighted in this work. Donor garments were made up of four different types of fibre; 100% cotton, 100% nylon, 100% polyester and 100% wool, that were used to observe the differences in the number of transferred fibres to the recipient garment (100% cotton) and vice versa with increasing contact times of 30, 60, 180, and 300 seconds respectively. To simulate contact between the donor garment worn by a suspect and the recipient garment worn by a victim in real-life situations, the donor garment was placed on top of the recipient garment which was laid on a piece of plywood. The numbers of transferred fibres, both from the donor to the recipient garment and from the recipient to the donor garment were observed and tested using microscopic examination, burning test, solubility test and dye extractability test. Results indicated that different types of garments transferred different number of fibres with increasing contact times, and the identification of the fibres are possible via the different tests applied in this work.

Wood is one of the most common material found in homes and industrial fires, particularly in Malaysia. The abundance of different types of wood used to build structures, frames, furniture and others are important to take note as wood is a conducive material that can be used to initiate and propagate a fire, particularly in forensic fire cases. This study was conducted to provide the volatile chemical fingerprint of burnt Merbau (Intsia sp.) wood using gas chromatographymass spectrometry (GC-MS). The wood samples were prepared under two conditions; fully dried and partially dried. Six study replications of each condition were burnt outdoors and underwent an extraction process using activated carbon tablets. The tablets were incubated in an oven for 16 hours at 80ºC. Next, the tablets were desorbed in two different types of solvent; pentane and ethanol. The pentane- and ethanol-desorbed volatile products were then introduced into the GC-MS. Volatile organic compounds obtained across both conditions were in the range of volatile acids, aromatics and its derivatives, D-glucopyranose, phenolic derivatives and cycloalkane. The compounds emitted by fully and partially dried Merbau wood samples were similar, differing only in the absence of malonic acid and succinic acid in partially dried Merbau wood samples. Both solvents desorbed different types of volatile compounds. The burning behaviour of partially dried Merbau wood were different to those documented from fully dried Merbau wood and is attributed to the composition of wood rather than the dry or wet conditions.